Summary
A Wisconsin judge has restored collective bargaining rights to public employees, overturning key provisions of the 2011 Act 10 law, which had sharply restricted union powers and sparked massive protests.
The ruling reinstates rights for most public sector unions to levels seen before 2011, aligning them with exempted groups like police and firefighters.
Republicans plan to appeal, likely sending the case to the liberal-controlled Wisconsin Supreme Court.
Union leaders celebrated the decision, while opponents argue it threatens local budgets and undermines past legal precedents supporting the law.
spring 2025 election in wisconsin is critically important.
ann walsh bradley, the longest-serving and one of the four ‘liberal’ justices (it’s technically a non-partisan bench) is retiring next year. the state’s supreme court only just swung to the left last year for the first time since 2008.
